Madonna marked her 67th birthday on August 16 with a trip to Italy, joined by her large family, including four of her six children.
The singer was photographed on Saturday at the historic Palio di Siena horse race in Tuscany, Italy, watching the festivities from a balcony joined by her loved ones.
Pictured with her were her son Rocco Ritchie, who turned 25 himself on August 11, her oldest, daughter Lourdes Leon, 28, and her youngest, her twins Stella and Estere, 12. Also joining in was her boyfriend Akeem Morris.
The Palio di Siena horse race is held twice a year, on July 2 and August 16, and is a tradition dating back to the 17th century. 10 horses and riders participate, representing ten of the 17 city wards called "contrade."
The race on August 16 is named the "Palio dell'Assunta," in honor of the Assumption of Mary. While the race is filled with twists and turns, they commonly don't take longer than 90 seconds.
While the singer kept things more low-key for her own birthday, when it came to her son's milestone celebration, she took to social media with a powerful message urging her followers and fans to support those affected by the ongoing atrocities in Gaza, specifically children.
"Politics Cannot affect Change. Only consciousness Can. Therefore I am Reaching out to a Man of God," she wrote. "Today is my Son Rocco's birthday. I feel the best gift I can give to him as a Mother – is to ask everyone to do what they can to help save the innocent children caught in the crossfire in Gaza."
"I am not pointing fingers, placing blame or taking sides. Everyone is suffering. Including the mothers of the hostages. I pray that they are released as well," she continued. "I am merely trying to do what I can to keep these children from dying of starvation."
Madonna welcomed Rocco with her ex Guy Ritchie, and the artist is close with both his parents. When he began his career in the art world, he went by the pseudonym Maison Rhed (which he still occasionally uses) to avoid being put in a box by his heritage.
Rocco recently addressed his affluent parentage during a recent conversation with the magazine Fantastic Man, saying: "I always think it's funny that back in the day, some of the most beautiful cathedrals that were ever built would be built by generation after generation of the same family."
"And now, if you are born from a family – and I'm not saying this is wrong – you start looking at nepo babies and they are not the most interesting bunch, are they?"
Speaking with Whitewall, Rocco noted that it was his "Vogue" hitmaker mom who often pushed him and the rest of his siblings to engage with their more creative sides. "I've been painting since I was a kid, as you may well know I grew up in a household with creativity on steroids."
"My mum didn't really give us the choice, which I'm so grateful for now, but she made us try all the creative paths," he noted, especially drawing on his experience as a newcomer to the art world as well as the paparazzi surrounding him since he was a child for his latest exhibition, "The Tourist."